Those who make any form of negative comments about this hilarious comedy should have their heads tested. This program is British comedy at its best, capturing the dry wit and sarcasm that is such a common feature of the great Englishman/ woman. Victoria Wood's writing is pure genius and the incredibly talented actors who surround her deliver those classic lines with impeccable timing. Victoria Wood resists the temptation, that so many "comedians" succumb to, of using slap stick to gain laughs. By capturing the charming characteristics of normal everyday people, particularly the Northern culture, that we can all relate to, Wood is 100% successful in producing a comedy which proves that British comedy shows ARE the funniest in the world.

It's no secret that Victoria Wood is a fan of soaps and it's clear that as a child she spent a lot of time watching popular TV, as did most of us. dinnerladies, which at the time of broadcast was presented as a revival of the sit-com has plenty of soap-opera aspects as well, and is all the better for them.For best results the episodes should be viewed in order, a mobile phone mentioned in the very last episode makes an appearance in the first one. We get to see character development and physical changes, not all of these parts of the story. Over time characters are filled out and we get more idea of what makes them tick. In fact this is done more carefully in dinnerladies than in some drama. In the world of TV, even in the Flintstones it grates when something you think you know about a character is arbitrarily changed, either because that week's writer doesn't know as much about the show as you do or they haven't worked the plot out thoroughly. In dinnerladies tremendous attention to detail is paid.This is an ensemble piece, like Dad's Army and the other Perry/Croft classics and we can recognise the naïve and gormless youth (Anita) and the daft ineffective officer type, Philippa /Celia Imrie. Some characters have catch phrases and these are worked into dialogue which is more like real speech, the way some people like to dwell on their medical problems.In films such as Full Monty, Billy Elliot and Brassed Off we get a side order of rather heavy handed politics, the noble worker verses the dead hand of political cost/benefit analysis etc. In dinnerladies the factory and the canteen have an uncertain future; this is a canteen in a manufacturing company for a start. Come to that a canteen is something of an anachronism, the business world is just so vulnerable to re-evaluating what matters, one day providing an in-house catering facility might be the height of corporate fashion, next week they want to use the floor space to provide space for focus groups. But the canteen staff don't see their work as a vocation, this is slinging pies not M*A*S*H. But for some the work is very important, when Stan gets the toaster going in time for the morning rush its Apollo 13 and the joy of being part a team, even if it is a team of women with a non-stop parade of embarrassing women's problems.But the women have other issues, husbands and parents to worry about and be tormented by. In a favourite episode Thora Hird, Dora Bryan and Eric Sykes make appearances in a "Take your Mother to work day". We get more background story on everyone and when it transpires that Philippa too has a dreadful mother for the first time she becomes a character we have some sympathy for. Perry and Croft didn't do this and the authentic soaps don't always it properly, they often just introduce horrible people who mellow, for no particular reason, over time.The cast is superb, Anne Reid (Jean) and Thelma Barlow (Dolly) deliver comic lines superbly and, authentically the workplace banter is very funny. If someone smiles at a line it's because that character got the joke, after Acorn Antiques there's no room unscripted behaviour. Julie Walters plays Bren's mum the hideous Petunia. Her main role is to continue to mess up Bren's life. No one pays much heed to her worsening kidney problems, somehow we manage to laugh these off.Comedy is a funny thing though; we want to have a laugh. And that's why the soaps work best with comedy. The catch phrases, the references to other shows, the horrible people, when we want to have a laugh these are all the cues we need.

I also remember a time when British comedy was funny - and it still is regardless of its many detractors.'Dinnerladies' is up there with the better British comedy shows of the late 90's. It shows some young, and not so young ladies going through the daily running of a factory cafeteria. The characters are very interesting, and the writing is well suited for them.All in all, its not the best but its good enough if you're needing some light entertainment to cheer you up.

Dinnerladies is uniquely british and unsurprisingly does not travel well beyond these shores. There is little physical humour and the references are primarily based on UK culture and the north of England in particular. However, it is also the best example of its type I've ever seen. Victoria Wood's dialogue is fantastic, (Alan Bennett is the only other writer in her league in this regard). The staging is restricted (effectively one set, two rooms) the plots are secondary and contrived because they are of no real significance. It is all merely backdrop for the characters Ms Wood creates and the way they speak to, across and around each other.A superb example of intelligent writing managing to survive in a world of slapstick